1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices useful for supporting a baby. More particularly, the present invention relates to portable diaper changing stations and methods of their use.
2. Description of the Invention's Background
Changing a baby's diaper in a two-story house presents problems. A traditional layette, i.e., the items needed by parents for the care of a newborn baby, always includes a changing table or padded changing surface. However, permanent diaper changing tables are generally kept in an upstairs bedroom or nursery because they are relatively large pieces of furniture, and will not fit in a smaller downstairs half bathroom or powder room. Especially when a baby is younger and requires numerous changes a day, carrying the baby upstairs for each change can be exhausting. This is especially true when the one doing the changing is a mother who has recently had a caesarean section, since climbing stairs many times following abdominal surgery is very difficult and not generally advisable. Older children usually require fewer changes but weigh more. Carrying them up and down the stairs is also inconvenient and tiring.
In the typical ground floor of a two-story house, it is possible to change a baby on a kitchen counter, a dining room table, a sofa, or the floor. However, changing a diaper on a sofa or floor risks soiling the fabric or the carpet, and changing a diaper in a kitchen or on a dining room table is both unappetizing and unsanitary. It would be desirable to change a baby's diaper in a bathroom so that the changer can quickly wash his or her hands afterward, but a bathroom, especially a half bathroom, generally has only irregular surfaces on which it is difficult if not impossible to change a diaper.
There is thus a need for a device which will enable changing of a baby's diaper on an irregular surface, which device is lightweight and may easily be stored out of the way in a small room such as a half bathroom. Such a device would be even more useful it were portable and provided space to carry accessories which are needed to change a baby's diaper.
A device for supporting a baby over a drawer space is known in the prior art. Specifically, U.S. Pat. No. 3,659,297 granted to Schutz discloses in FIGS. 1-5 a baby dressing table pad replacement which includes a first part having a foam cushion which overlies a bottom stiffener board and which is surrounded by a covering, and a second part hingedly connected to the first part, which second part also includes a foam cushion and straps to secure the first part to a table. The Schutz device has the disadvantage, however, that it is specifically designed for use with a particular type of baby dressing table having an interslidable part which includes drawer spaces. The pad replacement itself thus has no provisions for the carrying of accessories needed during the changing of a baby's diaper, nor any provisions for enabling easy carrying of the pad replacement.
A changing table, termed "Bathe & Change," is known which can be mounted over a bathtub. This table includes both a bath and a changing table which are mounted to what is apparently a wire frame which rests upon the edges of a bathtub. Since the table is apparently intended to be semi-permanent, it does not include means for enabling easy carrying of the table.
Wall-mounted changing tables of the type typically seen in public rest rooms are also known in the prior art. Such a wall mounted unit includes a rigid generally rectangular molded changing surface which has a handle formed therein and which is hingedly connected to a wall unit. A depression is formed in the changing surface for supporting a baby, and a strap is mounted on the changing surface for securing the baby in the depression. Such a unit has the disadvantage that it is mounted to a wall, and thus is not portable nor useful for supporting a baby on an irregular surface. In addition, such a unit has no provision for carrying accessories needed during the changing of a baby's diaper.
Other portable devices are known in the prior art which are generally directed toward supporting an infant. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,514 granted to Leach discloses a utility pad for infants which includes a flexible, rectangular fabric tube filled with a resilient material, and a flat sheet detachably secured across the bottom of the tube to form a sleeping surface for the infant. The tube can be folded into a U-shape and retained there by engaging elements on the tube to allow carrying of the pad. U.S. Pat. No. 2,626,407 granted to Kurry discloses a folding infant's crib which includes a pair of U-shaped rims formed of flexible covers having a soft filler, a pair of U-shaped cardboard bottoms below the U-shaped rims, and a rubber sheet removably placed in the oval-shaped recess between the rims. The crib can be folded in half and placed in a flexible case for carrying. Also, a product by BabyBjorn, termed the Travel Changing Bag, includes a soft changing surface to which pockets are attached, which surface can be folded up and carried like a handbag. The above devices have the problem, however, that their bottom surfaces are flexible and thus ill-suited for supporting an infant above an irregular surface, such as a sink. In addition, the devices of the Leach and Kurry patents fail to present an easy way to transport accessories which are needed in the care of an infant, and they thus necessitate the carrying of diaper bags and the like along with the devices, therefore making them less convenient.
Other types of devices are known which are adapted to act as portable supports and which include pockets for storage. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,402 granted to Markey discloses a collapsible table cover assembly for use in the handbell performing arts, which also serves as a carrying case for implements used in playing handbells. The cover includes internal padding, a rear pocket portion which is foldable over the padding, and a vertical apron which is releasably attached to the padding. A handle is permanently attached to the back of the padding. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 4,863,003 to Carter discloses a combination seat cushion tote bag, which includes a padded seat cushion to which is foldably attached a pocket portion and another portion. The two portions fold over the cushion to releasably attach at two corresponding Velcro fasteners. Portable devices such as disclosed in the Markey and Carter patents, however, have the problem that they are highly flexible and thus ill-suited for supporting on an irregular surface, especially a surface have a cavity therein. Such devices are thus ill-suited for safely supporting a baby on an irregular surface during an activity such as diaper changing.
In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved diaper changing station which is readily capable of supporting a baby on an uneven or irregular surface.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method of changing a baby's diaper using a portable changing station.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a diaper changing station which is portable.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method of safely and comfortably changing a baby's diaper using a portable changing station mounted on a surface having a cavity formed therein and a protruding portion formed thereon.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a diaper changing station which is adapted to easily carry accessories which are necessary to change a baby's diaper.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a diaper changing station which is relatively easy to carry.